ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. hand — in cards
  3. mug — a cup
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pop — music
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. current — electric
  9. hand — help
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. current — happening now
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. pop — to visit
  14. row — a line
  15. mug — to rob
  16. field — a subject
  17. ball — a dance
  18. pop — soda
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. mug — a face
  21. field — farmland
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. row — to paddle
  24. field — for sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com